Lipreading alphabet: Front Consonants (T, D, N, S, Z, L)

The T sound

How the T sound looks and how it is made:
The front and sides of the tongue touch the top part of the roof of the mouth directly behind the top front teeth, the constriction of which creates a stop in airflow and a sudden noise burst. The jaw (lower mandible) is elevated, and mouth doesn’t move much except for within the word context. The feeling for this sound is that the burst of air is punctuated when the tip of the tongue presses into the ridge directly behind the two top front teeth.

Examples:
till time (1) time (2) team (1) team (2) team (3) team (4) tomb (1) tomb (2) tomb (3) tome tie (1) tie (2) tight (1) tight (2) 2 (1) 2 (2) two (3) 2 (4) 2 (5) 2 (6) take talk (1) talk (2) took (1) took (2) took (3)

The D sound

How the D sound looks and how it is made:
The jaw (lower mandible is elevated), and the lips will change according the words but remain slightly apart. The sound produces a vibration in the vocal cords. The feeling for this sound is that the touching of the tip of the tongue on the alveolar ridge produces a stop in airflow, and a vibration.

Examples:
Dodge Dong Dig (1) dig (2) Dug (1) dug (2) dot Dob Dock Doff Dog

The N sound

How the N sound looks and how it is made:
The sound is made with the nasal cavity open, and produces acoustic sound through the nose. The lips may be apart depending on the word, and the jaw (lower mandible) is elevated. The vocal cords produce a vibration for this sound. The feeling with this sound is that the obstruction of the tip of the tongue and sides of the tongue at the alveolar ridge produce airflow through the nose.

Examples:
number new (1) new (2) new (3) no (1) no (2) no (3) No (4) No (5) know (1) know (2) know (3) now known (1) known (2) known (3) night (1) night (2) night (3) next

The S sound

How the S sound looks and how it is made:
The side of the tongue is pressed into contact with the roof of the mouth (hard palate) and teeth, with a narrow groove midline on the tongue, allowing airflow through. The tongue tip can be lowered or raised behind the teeth. The jaw (lower mandible) is elevated, and the lips are relaxed depending on the word. The feeling is with this sound of a blowing of air through a canal the tongue creates in the upper part of the mouth, and through the teeth; which creates almost a hiss.

Examples:
say (1) say (2) san (1) san (2) sand seek see (1) see (2) see (3) see (4) stay (1) stay (2) saw (1) saw (2) saw (3) same set (1) set (2) set (3) set (4) seen (1) seen (2) sink sell (1) sell (2)

The Z sound

How the Z sound looks and how it is made:
The tongue creates a midline channel for air to pass through that is produced by the tongue sides and back pressing into the sides of the roof of the mouth. The jaw (lower mandible) is elevated, and the lips change depending on the word. The turbulence of air and the vibration of the vocal cords produce a buzzing sound. The feeling with this sound is that of the sound moving through the tongue channel, produces a buzz along with the vibration of the vocal cords.

Examples:
zone (1) zone (2) 0 (1) 0 (2) 0 (3) 0 (4) 0 (5) 0 (6) zoo

The L sound

How the L sound looks and how it is made:
The tip of the tongue reaches up and touches the area directly behind the front of the top teeth called the alveolar ridge. The jaw (lower mandible) is elevated, and the lips are relaxed open. The sound creates a vibration in the vocal cords. The feeling with this sound is that of the tip of the tongue pressing into the alveolar ridge directly behind the top front teeth.